The original ritual
by AnonymousDH
Summary: Before the can opener they had another ritual. It wasn't about Donna helping him prep for trial; it was actually the other way around. He didn't particularly liked the theatre, but he liked Donna. He however stopped with it as he moved to the firm; he couldn't really say if it was because he got too busy or because she reinforced the rule. [Pride & Prejudice references]


Before the can opener they had another ritual. A ritual that wasn't about Donna helping him prep for trial. Their first ritual was actually the other way around. He didn't particularly liked the theatre, but he liked Donna and that summed it up. He stopped with it as he moved to the firm; he couldn't really say if it was because he got too busy or because she reinforced the rule. One shot.

* * *

' _We misjudged him, Papa. Me more than anyone. In every way. Not just in this matter.' Elisabeth chuckles and brings her hand to her face; 'I've been nonsensical.' She paced through the room, 'but he's been a fool about Jane, about so many other things.' She stopped and turned around, ' But then, so have I. You see, he and I are … He and I are so similar.' She laughed at her father, 'We're both so stubborn. Papa, I …' Her father laughed, 'You really do love him, don't you?' 'Very much.'_

Donna paused her DVD player and she repeated Elisabeth's words in her head. She thought about her and Harvey, how they in some way matched the characters of Elisabeth and Mr. Darcy. _They too could both be so stubborn_. She laughed at her own thoughts, _Harvey as Mr. Darcy?_

Donna had been binge watching the film and the TV-series and now moved on to her favourite novel. That afternoon she found out that her old theatre party was turning Pride and Prejudice into a play and Donna considered this to be the perfect opportunity for her to make a comeback

* * *

The next morning she walked into Harvey's office letting out a yawn, she had spent all night reading the book and the script. She wanted to on top of her game for her audition the next day.

'Donna?' Harvey asked as he saw his secretary walk in his office.

'Harveeey,' she started and he looked up to her. This wasn't her usual tone, he wondered what she was about to ask; 'Yes, what do you want?'

'Do you have anything to do tonight?'

He was surprised by her question, it was usually him initiating the two of them hanging out, but he liked the change. 'No, I don't.'

'Good! Then you can help me rehearse for my audition tomorrow,' she said as she placed the script on his desk. He didn't look at it, 'which play?'

'My favourite book,' Donna answered and he watched her face lit up. _It had to be Pride and Prejudice._

'Shopahollic?' he teased.

Donna just rolled her eyes at him and pointed at the script in front of him before she turned around to her desk.

Harvey watched the redhead leave his office and he looked down. He was right, it was Pride and Prejudice. He remembered how she had asked him this before when they still worked at the D.A.'s office. And although he didn't like the theatre, he had always loved helping Donna prepare for her auditions. And preparing for her auditions turned into helping her prepare the night before the premiere. They would have dinner together and she would give him the script she already knew by heart. He got to pick any scene to test her and she really did know all the lines. It was their first ritual he realised as he thought about it and he realised how much he had missed this part of her life. When they moved to the firm his working hours nearly doubled and she always stayed. The first year she tried to combine it with as much plays as possible, but the more successful he became in his career the lesser she practiced acting. And if she did have an audition he was usually too busy and told her he didn't have the time. She traded him for Louis, until she quit al together. He regretted those moments he said no to her and he was glad she had asked him again and not Louis.

That afternoon Donna walked into Harvey's office, he wasn't back from his meeting yet, but she wanted to wait on his couch. She kicked of her pumps and placed her long legs on the sofa. She realised how tired she had been all day. _Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to pull an all-nighter filled with Mr. Darcy._

Harvey stepped out of the elevator and walked back to his office. The meeting had been extremely boring, as expected and he was genuinely looking forward to helping Donna. He had even brought the script with him for during the ride; not that he needed to read it, he actually knew the story. He thought about Donna going on and on about Jane Austen and how it was a classic story, how she had convinced him to watch the TV-series. Five and a half hours of watching Collin Firth, and he remembered how jealous he felt when he saw Donna swooning at the scream as Darcy rose up out of the pond. He had even read the book, to impress her, but he had never gotten the chance to surprise her with the quotes like he had done numerous times with Sean Connery movies.

'Donna?' he asked as he walked into his office, but he found his redhead on the couch fast asleep. He admired the sight for a few moments and placed himself on his desk chair. He'd let her sleep as he continued with his work.

* * *

 _Girls, Girls! Come here,' Jessica said and Donna, Rachel and Katrina followed her._

 _'What's the news?' Rachel asked._

 _'The firm needs a new associate and I've just heard about the best candidate from Harvard. His name is Michael Ross. Girls, you need to help bringing him in to the firm.'_

 _The three friends agreed and went to the coffee room to gossip about the news. They wondered who this Mr. Ross could be and how they could help Jessica bring him in to the firm._

 _Two days later was the annual party of the firm and of course Mr. Ross had been invited. The girls showed up in their finest outfits and they were dancing some of the male partners when he walked in. The entire crowd parted as Mr. Ross, another man and a woman entered the room. Donna quickly walked towards her friend. 'Sheila, which one is Mr. Ross?' she asked._

 _'He's the one on the left , the woman on the right is Ms. Griffith.'_

 _'And who's the man with that smirk smile?' she asked._

 _'That is Mr. Specter, he's Mr. Ross best friend and boss.'_

 _The company of three walked past Donna and Sheila and Donna made eye contact with Mr. Specter, but he just frowned at her. Jessica, followed by the paralegal and the young associate, walked towards Donna and Sheila. 'Ladies, if you follow me, I'll introduce you to our special guest.' The women walked over to two man and woman. Jessica shook Mike's hand, 'Mr. Ross, it's a pleasure to meet you. Let me introduce you to my staff. This is Rachel Zane, she's our best paralegal.' Mike looked at Rachel and smiled, the girl was gorgeous like he had never seen before. He took her hand and placed a kiss on the back of her hand, 'Miss Zane, my pleasure.'_

 _'And this is Donna Paulsen, the best legal secretary in town,' she said as she pointed at Donna._

 _She shook Mike's hand, followed by Harvey's. Touching his hand send a shiver down her spine. There was something about this guy that was making her nervous._

 _After the introduction the four friends walked back to the dancefloor; Rachel was followed by Mr. Ross who asked her to dance. Donna looked to her right and saw Mr. Specter standing next to her. 'Do you dance, Mr. Specter?' she asked._

 _'Not if I can help it,' he answered before he walked away._

* * *

'Mr. Specter is giving me the creeps.'

Harvey wakes up from his thoughts and watches Donna. She's still asleep, but looks angry. Disgusted even. He realises she's talking in her sleep and he wonders what's she dreaming about. Why he was giving her the creeps, why she looked so angry. He just hoped it wasn't how she truly felt about him.

* * *

 _Donna and Sheila are chatting about some office gossip when Mr. Ross and Mr. Specter walk by. 'Ooh she's so lovely, the most beautiful creature I've ever seen,' Mike says. '_

 _Miss Zane is alright,' the older man answers._

 _'Ooh and her friend Donna is great too. She'd be a great match for you' the younger man continues. Donna hears the two guys conversing; 'off course I am, I'm donna,' she thinks._

 _'The legal secretary?' Mr Specter asks, 'no, she's not smart enough to tempt me.'_

 _Donna swallows, she's furious. Not smart enough, she might only be a secretary, but she was the best. She was Donna. Sheila noticed Donna getting angry, 'hey, don't worry about it. If he had liked you, you probably should have had to work with him.'_

 _'Yeah, you're right. Now I can just ignore him,' she answered._

 _A day later Jessica informs Rachel and Donna about the current business and if they had succeed in bringing Mr. Ross to the frim. 'I think we have almost convinced him,' she starts, 'Rachel, I want you to go over to his place and have him sign these files.' Rachel asks Donna to come with her. Donna doesn't mind, she likes this Mr. Ross and she sees how much her friend likes him. She just hopes his friend, Mr. Specter won't be there. Unfortunately he was present and she couldn't wait to leave the dinner party; she had no interest in speaking to the guy. Not even if she had to be a wing-woman for Rachel. Mike says his news friends goodbye, but not before he invites them for his birthday party. The two man escort the women towards the taxi. Mike places a gentle kiss on Rachel's cheeks and tells her he can't wait to see her again. He gives Donna a hand and tells her it was a pleasure getting to know her better. She greets him and as she's about to get into the taxi she feels Mr. Specter's hand resting on the small of her back helping her in the cab. A shiver runs down her spine and she doesn't know where to look. The moment Harvey 's hand touches the skin of her back he feels like he has just been shocked. He pulls his hand back and quickly turns around, clenching his fist. This woman was something different he thought._

 _A week later Mr. Litt comes to the firm; he's looking for someone to work for him. Louis talks to Jessica about Rachel, but she has to disappoint him. Rachel can't come work for him as she's currently also going to law school. His eye then meets Donna as she walks out of the firm. Donna will do._

 _Donna is meeting Sheila at the bar and it isn't that much later when they are joined by Katrina and Rachel. The four of them are having a blast and Donna is enjoying herself on the dancefloor until some guys spills her drink. 'Hey, watch it, will you!'_

 _'I'm so sorry, miss. Let me buy you another one,' he says as he guides her to the bar. He buys her another margarita as he introduces himself. 'My apologies again, Ms. Paulsen. My name is Stephen Huntly.'_

 _'Apology excepted, Mr. Huntly,' Donna replies with a blush on her face. The guy is attractive and quite the gentleman. She spends the rest of the evening chatting with him until her friends tell her they are leaving._

 _Stephen offers to walk them home, which they accept. Two blocks further the company of five walk into Mr. Ross and Mr. Specter. Mike greets Rachel and tells her he regrets not seeing her that night. Harvey looks at Donna and the man besides her. He doesn't greet them, instead he turns around and hails a cab. Donna noticed the sudden departure of Mr. Specter and she looks at Stephen. 'What was that about?'_

 _'Let's just say we've done some business in the past and he can't get over the fact I beat him.'_

 _Donna laughs, the great Mr. Specter is apparently not so great after all._

 _On Friday evening Donna is helping Rachel getting ready for Mr. Ross' birthday party; a masked ball. They gossip about Mike and Donna can tell how much he likes her friend. Rachel tells her she thinks Mr. Huntly is exactly what Donna needs and that she hopes he will be there as well._

 _Mike and Harvey are waiting on the dancefloor, both wearing tuxedos and a black mask. Harvey reassures his friend that Rachel will join be there and that he will help him find her. He wonders if Donna will be there too and if he'll be able to find her. But he immediately spots her bright red hair and knows it's her. There's something about this woman that is making him nervous. He can't really decide what it is; but he's willing to find out. Even if that means having to dance. Harvey walks towards Donna and asks her if he can have the next dance. Donna is so in shock by his question that she answers she will. When she finally realizes she has just promised to dance with Mr. Specter she rushes herself to Sheila._

* * *

Five minutes later, Harvey finds himself still looking at his sleeping secretary. She looks so peaceful and he enjoys being able to admire her beauty without her being able to see he's watching her. He considers it to be a game of them; when she's at work at her desk he glances a look at her about every five minutes. It's like he has to remind himself that she's there and what she looks like. Not that he can forget her beautiful features he only got to see one time ten years ago. But this time, he's just watching her face chance from expression to expression. 'Ooh, Sheila, my dearest friend,' he hears her say and he sees she actually looks happy now. Harvey's now really curious as to what she's dreaming. In what kind of universe her mind is; a place where he's apparently giving her the creeps and Sheila seems to be her best friend.

* * *

 _Donna finds herself dancing with Mr. Specter. Although he said he'd avoid dancing if he could, he's great at it. Her hand is resting in his hand and her other hand is resting on his shoulder, she's almost able to reach his hair. Harvey caresses her hand with his thumb and his other hand is resting on the small of her back. The music changes to a tango and he pulls her closer, their bodies now almost completely touching. Donna doesn't know how to respond to his sudden move but she can't stop looking at him either. They continue to dance, never breaking their eye contact, until Mr. Litt interrupts them. 'Ms. Paulsen, my I have the next dance?' he asks. Donna doesn't want to dance with him, but she knows how important he is to the firm, so she agrees. At the end of the evening she finds herself continuously followed by Mr. Litt who ends up giving her a job offer. She declines, she's convinced he could never make her happy working for him and that see, all her Donnaness aside, could never truly make him happy as she's merely a secretary._

 _The next day Donna gets a call from Rachel. She's in tears. Apparently Mr. Ross and his company has left town and is now back in New Haven. Even though it was just Rachel's task to bring him in to the firm, she knew her friend had fallen for Mike. She could see it in her face and Donna really thought that Mike felt the same. She convinced Rachel to take a semester at the Yale. After her conversation with Rachel she got a call from Sheila, telling her that she had excepted Louis' job offer and followed him to Boston. Donna couldn't believe what she just heard. She never thought her friend would be interested in working with him, but then again she was a Harvard geek and if he worked in Boston she'd probably be able to get a job at the school she admired so much. Sheila asked her friend to come visit her in Boston and Donna agreed._

 _A week later Donna travelled to Boston. Sheila showed her around at the university she'd been working now and she told her how good Louis had been to her. How Louis was close friends to Ava Hessington, the universities principle and how the two of them had joined her and her daughter Scottie for dinner several times. Donna was happy for her friend and she was quite excited to meet this Ava and Scottie._

 _That night Donna followed Louis and Sheila to the Hessington House, but once inside she found herself eye to eye with Mr. Specter. 'Mr. Specter,' she started, 'What are you doing here?'_

 _Harvey was surprised to see the red head here; he was there for business and thought that seeing Donna here could make his stay far more interesting._

 _'You know my star graduate?' Ava asked._

 _'Uhm, yes I do,' Donna answered, 'I met him in New York at the firm I work, Pearson Hardman.'_

 _'Ooh, Pearson Hardman you say,' Ava said, 'my daughter works at Darby International. They are going to merge with Mr. Specter.'_

 _Donna looked at Ava and Scottie and back to Harvey. She could sense the double meaning of that word; she simply knew Ava wanted him to be with Scottie on not only a professional level. And she could have him. At the end of the night, after a couple of glasses of scotch Donna found herself being escorted to her hotel room by Mr. Specter. There was something strange about him that evening. It wasn't that he was drunk, cause he wasn't , but she had noticed he'd been drinking trying to find the courage to do something. She stood next to him in the elevator patiently waiting for the elevator to reach her floor. They weren't talking and she didn't know where to look. She could feel his eyes burn on her skin. The moment the doors opened she stepped out, but Harvey grabbed her arm and pulled her back. Their bodies clashed as he cupped her face with his hand and kissed her. It was purely a reflex as she kissed him back, but it took her only a few seconds to get back to reality. She pulled away and looked at him angrily. 'I'm sorry,' he started, 'I've tried to forget about you, but I can't. I love you. I need you.'_

* * *

Donna woke up and looked around. _What the hell,_ she thought. _Maybe it wasn't such a great idea to audition for this play._

'Hey, sleepy head. What were you dreaming about?' he asked her.

Donna turned around to face Harvey, 'nothing,' she lied.

'Bullshit,' he said, 'you were talking in your sleep.'

 _Shit,_ she thought and she wondered what and how much he had exactly heard. Especially the part she woke up from. 'Let's just say it was weird.'

'I'm glad to hear that,' he said.

'Why?'

'Well,' he started as he got out of his chair and walked towards her, 'apparently in that pretty head of yours, Mr. Specter gives you the creeps.'

Donna started laughing, remembering she had actually dreamed that as well, but she decided to pretend she knew nothing. 'Really?'

'Yeah and your face looked real angry, then you seemed very content and started talking about Sheila being your best friend. And just before you woke up …'

Donna slightly panicked, replaying the scene in her mind: _I love you, I need you._ She hope she hadn't said it out loud as well.

'You looked extremely happy,' Harvey continued as he placed himself next to her on the couch, 'what happened?'

'Uhm… I can't remember,' she lied. 'Harvey, maybe this wasn't such a good idea, maybe I shouldn't do the audition.'

'What, no!'

'I probably won't get the part anyway.'

'No. I won't have it. You will go to that audition, I have not read that script for nothing.'

'You've read it?' she asked.

'I have,' he lied. 'So I get to pick a scene right?'

Donna nodded.

Harvey opened the script to a random page, but he didn't even look at the text. He knew the exact lines he was going to say to her; he knew them all along and he had been waiting ten years to say them. He looked Donna in the eye as he said: 'In vain I have struggled. It will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire you. And love you.'


End file.
